No Challenges Remaining

Episode 352a: A Wimbledon Preamble

Ben and Tumaini Carayol sat down to record a draw show, but there was enough other stuff they wanted to touch on beforehand that they're breaking it into a separate prologue episode for you to enjoy here as an amuse bouche!

On Wimbledon qualifying, Caroline Wozniacki's comeback announcement, the WTA's announced commitment to equal prize money by 2027, Billie Jean King giving her blessing to women's tennis pursuing Saudi Arabia, and the current state of the WTA as a business and a product.

Enjoy!

Episode 286a: Remember When? 2020, Part 1

What was it like to form memories in 2020? For Ben and Courtney, things were far more vivid when we were still able to travel, so this first half of our annual "Remember When" is heavy on January.

Have our thoughts on ATP Cup changed with the passage of time? And how about those donations to the Australian bushfire relief?

Where were we when we realized coronavirus was going to be serious? And how did our outlook on the year and our lives shift?

Part 2, which covers April to the present, out later this week! Happy Holidays!

Thank you again for the incredible support for NCR we've received this year on the NCR Patreon! If you'd like to join in as we bring you the best shows we can each week, check out our five tiers and see which might be right for you! And thank you to the many listeners who have already given their support! (And thank you to G.O.A.T. backers J O'D, Mike, Nicole Copeland, Anna Welinder, and Pam Shriver!)

As always, thanks for following us on Twitter and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 273k: 2020 U.S. Open Day 10 - Mary Carillo and the Final Fours

Mary Carillo, NCR's favorite, joins Ben and Courtney for a third time as the U.S. Open gets to the business end of the draws, as we are now down to four semifinalists for both the men and women.

What has it been like calling this completely different tournament from on site at the Open? What have been the unexpected revelations of this new landscape and soundscape? Why does the Chinese restaurant want you to order the fries?

We discuss all eight semifinalists in some detail: Jennifer Brady, Victoria Azarenka, Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka; Pablo Carreno Busta, Alexander Zverev, Daniil Medvedev, and Dominic Thiem.

Thank you again for the incredible support for NCR we've received in recent days!

If you'd like to join fellow listeners in supporting our show as we work to crank out daily shows during the 2020 U.S. Open, we've launched an NCR Patreon where you can do just that! Check out our five tiers and see which might be right for you! And thank you to the many listeners who have already given their support! (And thank you to G.O.A.T. backers J O'D, Mike, and Charles Cyna!)

As always, thanks for following us on Twitter and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 243c: Australian Open - Wozniacki & Jabeur, with Freddie & Reem

As we finish Day 3 in Melbourne, you'll hear more about two of the more interesting players to have advanced through two rounds so far, who (somewhat coincidentally, honestly) happen to play each other in the third round. 

First, you'll hear from 2012 Wimbledon champion Freddie Nielsen (who first guested way back on Episode 32) about his compatriot and longtime friend Caroline Wozniacki, who has carried the flag for Denmark in tennis higher than anyone could have imagined it will fly.

Then, Ben is joined by Reem Abulleil to discuss Ons Jabeur, Wozniacki's third round opponent, who is blazing a greater trail for Arab women than anyone has before, and still has tremendous potential left to unlock in her game.

You may not have thought you wanted a Wozniacki-Jabeur hype show, but we're pretty sure you're gonna be ready to run through a brick wall to see it by the time you finish this. 

As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook (leave comments on the episode thread! Engage with other listeners!), following us on Twitter (discuss this episode with hashtag #NCRAusOpen!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 242: Australian Open 2020 Draw Preview

Ben and Courtney dive into the first Grand Slam of the 2020s with some Big Decade Energy, breaking down the paths for the top women and men in Melbourne.

We start with the women, where Ash Barty is the top seed and hometown hope, and where many contenders clustered in the top half, particularly in the second quarter (Osaka, Serena, and an R1 between Venus and Gauff).

On the men's side, we like the paths for the top four, and appreciate the pruning of the plant to inspire new growth. Or something like that. 

As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook (leave comments on the episode thread! Engage with other listeners!), following us on Twitter (discuss this episode with hashtag #NCR242!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 238b: Top 10 Defining Female Players of the Decade

Ben and Courtney wrap up the decade with our choices for the 10 most defining players of the 2010s in women's tennis.

Tough decisions had to be made! Just counting women with 2+ Slams in the 2010s already gets you to 10, and what fun is that? So to be representative and interesting, we had to make some tough, tough snubs along the way.

Agree? Disagree! Please share your own lists!

Thank you for joining us all decade long and into 2020! Happy New Year!

As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook (leave comments on the episode thread! Engage with other listeners!), following us on Twitter (discuss this episode with hashtag #NCRDefinesTheDecade!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 227: Draw Me Like One of Your French Opens, 2019

With hours to go before the 2019 French Open begins, Ben and Courtney sit down for a quick-ish rundown of who can win this tournament and why.

From Naomi to Novak, Rafa to Petra, Plisko to Delpo, Tsitsi to Kiki, it's all here. 

As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook (leave comments on the episode thread! Engage with other listeners!), following us on Twitter (discuss this episode with hashtag #NCR227!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 220: 2019 Australian Open Draw Show

As they begin Season 8(!) of NCR, Ben and Courtney dive into the men's and women's draws of the Australian Open, which look well set up for the usual suspects on the men's side, and for just about anybody on the women's side. So, business as usual! 

We will have more for you soon (including Courtney's many feelings about Sir Andrew Barron Murray), but for now enjoy this look ahead at what should be a fun two weeks in Melbourne. 

As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook (leave comments on the episode thread! Engage with other listeners!), following us on Twitter (discuss this episode with hashtag #NCR220!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!

Episode 219a: Remember When? 2018, Part 1

With a whole year behind them, Ben and Courtney have a whole lot to look back on, both fondly and...less fondly. 

And so, the fairly annual "Remember When?" episode is here, at least the first third of it on the first four or so months on the season. All sorts of wacky things happened in Australia, and the year stayed interesting throughout.

These episodes are less about the headline grabbing stories and more about the smaller moments that made the year feel how it felt, and we do hope you enjoy it as a tasty dessert at the end of a year-long meal. 

As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook (leave comments on the episode thread! Engage with other listeners!), following us on Twitter (discuss this episode with hashtag #NCRRememberWhen!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!

Episode 218: A Season Ends; A Ninja Departs

Back together for the first time since New York, Ben and Courtney recap the fall season, revisiting Elina Svitoina and Sascha Zverev winning the year-end championships, Darren Cahill stopping his work with Simona Halep, the surge of Wang Qiang, and a bit more.

We then eulogize and celebrate the magnificent career of Agnieszka Radwanska, a player who found unique possibilities for how to play--and excel in--the sport like no other in this era. She's awesome, and we'll miss her a whole lot.

We close the main part of the show with a discussion of the general silence from the tennis media around the arrest of Justin Gimelstob on a felony battery charge in Los Angeles, and what the reaction can and needs to be.

Courtney closes out the show with a comprehensive gift guide for anyone in your life who might like a board game, which we do hope you'll find handy. 

As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook (leave comments on the episode thread! Engage with other listeners!), following us on Twitter (discuss this episode with hashtag #NCR218!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!